October 17, 2022

HSP Pakistan Partners Publish Paper on Strengths of Virtual BRM Programming during the COVID-19 Pandemic Restrictions

Restrictions on in-person gatherings during the COVID-19 pandemic led to a significant rise in virtual training programs, making training more globally accessible but also making personal engagement more challenging. Health Security Partners hosted a series of virtual biorisk management trainings in Pakistan during the COVID-19 pandemic under its Centers of Excellence (COE) program. One of these training programs was conducted in partnership with Prof. Dr Shamsul Arfin Qasmi from the Bahawalpur Medical and Dental College, Pakistan, who hosted a virtual biorisk management training in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic in April 2021. This training drew 34 people from 22 different institutions in 11 different cities across Pakistan. Active learning strategies that connected presenters and participants were used to deliver this program. The impact of the virtual training was thoroughly evaluated via poll questions, pre-/post assessments, and feedback surveys. Using the responses, Dr. Qasmi and collaborators were able to understand the effectiveness of the virtual training program, as well as identify gaps and devise measures to improve virtual delivery and achieve desired outcomes. The results were recently published in the Frontiers in Public Health Journal. This paper will help others learn from this virtual training and replicate the strengths of this training program in their workshops and training programs. The paper is available at https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2022.888097/full.